Waynesville, MO Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Section 215.240 of the Waynesville Municipal Code makes it unlawful to keep, harbor or maintain any wild or domesticated animal, reptile or fowl within City limits except under the categories the ordinance lists. For ordinary household pets, the rule sets a hard numeric ceiling: no dwelling unit may house more than six dogs or cats, six months of age or older, in any combination, and the total across all household pets for that unit may not exceed six. The Code layers on a breeding limit too: only one litter of any animal is allowed per household at any given time, so a litter of puppies or kittens under six months does not itself push a household over the six-animal cap, but a second litter arriving before the first ages out or is placed does violate the Section.

Beyond the headcount, Section 215.240 conditions every household pet on behavior: the animal cannot become excessively noisy, excessively odorous, dangerous, or otherwise disruptive to the residential character of the area, or it becomes a public nuisance actionable under Section 215.100 and Section 215.300's Animal Nuisance ticket process, which carries a $25.00 fee payable within thirty days. Waynesville's Animal Control Officer, operating out of the City Animal Shelter under Chapter 215, enforces the cap and can act on nuisance complaints from neighbors even where the numeric limit itself is not exceeded.

The definitions in Section 215.020 clarify that a household animal or pet is a domesticated animal typically found in residential dwellings, such as dogs, cats, gerbils, hamsters, ferrets, turtles, non-venomous snakes and reptiles, parrots, canaries and parakeets, which is the category Section 215.240 caps at six per dwelling.